Realme 12 Pro Plus review

The Realme 12 Pro Plus exudes a refined aesthetic, sporting a vegan leather back and a round camera module. Accentuated by a golden fluted bezel and a central line, the phone sports a premium look. Its sides and camera frame are also golden-hued. Our review unit was blue, so blue and golden looked pretty nice. Realme says it has drawn inspiration from the world of luxury watches for the design of the 12 Pro Plus. The brand has collaborated with the French watchmaker Ollivier Savéo, known for his craftsmanship with Swiss watch brands like Rolex, Roger Dolby, Piaget, Breitling, and Quentin. So we believe it's basically to infuse a bit of that horological grace into this smartphone's design.

You'll find the volume rocker and power button on the right side of the Realme 12 Pro Plus so it's easy access there. The bottom houses the Type-C port, SIM tray, microphone, and speaker. The left side is totally clean and it (surprisingly) contributes to the overall clean aesthetic. The Realme 12 Pro Plus has a slender form factor, measuring 8.75mm in thickness and tipping the scales at 196g. The material on the rear is dirt-resistant so in everyday use case scenarios, it's easy to clean—just a swipe of a cloth or wet wipe would do.

The 12 Pro Plus also has a scratch-resistant rear side, so you can flaunt the phone in all its glory without the need for a cover, except for enhanced safety. But the fear of unsightly scratches marring the back is still very less. And for that extra layer of protection (on the front), Realme has you covered, literally, with an included screen protector, right out of the box.

The Realme 12 Pro Plus comes with a 120Hz curved display. This 6.7-inch OLED screen has a resolution of 2412 x 1080 pixels (FHD+) and reproduces 100% P3 colour gamut. Basking in the glow of a global maximum brightness of 800 nits and a local peak brightness of 950 nits, the display looks fine in broad daylight. The display also comes shielded by a 0.55mm secondary tempered high-strength glass. 

Another point worth mentioning is that the Realme 12 Pro Plus has a TÜV Rheinland Strobe-free Certification and TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light Certification. This is important, citing the time we all spend on our mighty smartphones. These certifications ensure a (relatively) less strained viewing experience

After the buzz surrounding the Realme 11 Pro Plus and its colossal 200MP sensor, the anticipation for the 12 Pro Plus' camera was definitely sky-high. It wouldn’t have been very surprising if the brand had shipped the smartphone with a 300MP camera (in a world obsessed with megapixels). However they did the wiser thing and opted for a 50MP main camera. And the results are pretty slick. But before we delve into the image details, let's shed some light on the camera sensors. The 50MP IMX890 camera has a 1/1.56-inch sensor with a 24mm equivalent focal length, f/1.8 Aperture, Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), and 2X in-sensor zoom. Complementing this is a 64MP periscope lens housing the OmniVision OV64B sensor with a 1/2-inch sensor size, and an 8MP ultra-wide lens. And a 32MP front camera featuring the Sony IMX615 sensor with a FOV of 90° and f/2.4 aperture ensures crisp and detailed selfies. 

The details are captured quite well and colours are captured in their natural tones. What's particularly commendable is the minimal colour correction applied. Skin tones, a primary concern in smartphone photography, find a reliable ally in the Realme 12 Pro Plus. The camera strikes a balance by maintaining a natural look, without excessive softening. This holds true whether you're capturing portraits or standard shots. And even under the unforgiving scrutiny of bright sunlight, any retouching of skin colour is so subtle that it's almost negligible. For those who like touch-ups there is the AI Beauty Algorithm to enhance your skin as well as features. 

The portrait mode is good too, first of all it's got 3x zoom. Generally, portraits are rendered with a shallow depth of field. Plus, you get the power to tweak the aperture and preview the bokeh effect. This means you can adjust the depth of field to achieve your desired level of background blur. 

The Pro mode is also pretty interesting. Here, you get to play with ISO settings, focal lengths ranging from 16mm to 71mm (0.6x, 1x, 2x, 3x, 6x), shutter speed, and White Balance. There is also a dedicated Starry Night and Long Exposure mode. Now in the less-than-cooperative Delhi sky during our attempts, we weren't able to exactly check the prowess of this mode but it definitely amplifies the light intake. Now, the smartphone offers an ambitious 120x zoom option. However, a word of caution: the images may not meet your expectations at this extreme zoom level. When it comes to videos, you can record in 4K at 30fps from the rear camera, while the front camera lets you capute 1080p at 30fps.

The Realme 12 Pro Plus is driven by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 Processor. Fabricated using Samsung's 4nm process it has an 8-core 64-bit architecture. Plus, the Adreno 710 GPU, operating at 940MHz. 

During the testing, we put the phone through its paces by not closing background apps. To our delight, the Realme 12 Pro Plus handled over 10 apps in the background without really hampering the functioning, offering a rather seamless experience while switching between apps and opening new ones. The device operates on Realme UI 5.0, based on the Android 14 platform. The phone does come pre-loaded with some bloatware, the silver lining is that you can remove them later on. Plus, its got dual speakers with Dolby Atmos. 

What sets the Realme 12 Pro Plus (a bit) apart is its extensive customisation options. From changing wallpapers and exploring a plethora of themes to adjusting the size of icons and tweaking fonts, the phone allows you to tailor the entire look and feel according to your preferences.  Additionally, the device incorporates practical features like app lock and the ability to hide apps, adding an extra layer of security and privacy to your digital world.  The Realme 12 Pro Plus features up to 12GB+12GB of Dynamic RAM, letting you convert ROM into RAM for enhanced performance. The standard 12GB RAM comes with three expansion options (4GB, 8GB, and 12GB). And there are three variants – 8GB+128GB, 8GB+256GB, and 12GB+256GB.

The Realme 12 Pro Plus packs a 5000mAh battery, accompanied by a 67W SuperVOOC charger – good part: you get the charger right in the box. Talk about convenience! Charging- wise, the phone takes approximately 30-40 minutes to full charge. This actually ensures you spend less time tethered to the charging cable and more time enjoying your device.

With moderate usage, the Realme 12 Pro Plus proves to be a reliable companion, powering through a day on a single charge. However, if you indulge in a binge-watching marathon or other power-hungry activities, the battery might drain a bit quicker.

Realme 12 Pro Plus shines with a nice design, with a decent display that's both visually striking and practical. Its 50MP main camera impresses with natural tones and Pro mode flexibility, while the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2 Processor ensures smooth performance. We weren’t necessarily a fan of the zoomed-in images.